Make a Move
by moonlitRed
Summary: Fuu is kidnapped and injured. How does Mugen handle it? M for language, violence, suggestive themes
1. Taken

_I do not own Samurai Champloo. No matter how much I wish I did. If I did, it wouldn't have ended._

_Sadly, this is what happens when I get bored during class...I start daydreaming and come up with stuff like this :)_

_Summary: Fuu is kidnapped again and injured. How does Mugen handle it?_

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><p>He slipped into the alleyway, hiding himself in the shadows of the building. He panted quietly, trying to catch his breath. <em>Damn bastards. They're pretty quick. Da bitch just had to get snatched by shit like them, didn't she?<em> The image of her getting dragged away as he and Jin fought off the rest of the gang that had jumped them flitted through his mind. He felt the pride swell. _Heh, at least she ain't completely stupid. She's got a lotta fight in 'er. _He smirked, thinking of her biting one of her captor's hands when he tried to cover her mouth to shut her up. She'd kicked and fought, screaming obscenities that, under normal circumstances, would make her and the samurai blush that he knew she'd picked up from him. Well, she'd been screaming them till the thug she'd bit back handed her across the face, knocking her unconscious. He'd barely heard Jin scream out her name as he'd let loose a howl of rage that the bastard who'd hit her smirked at him.

His vision flared red again at the thought. Rage burning brighter as he remembered the thug picking up her ankles to help throw her over one of the goons' shoulder. He'd then ran a hand up her calf, laughing lewdly as he watched the fury play on the pirate's face. No one touched her like that but him. Especially since he had yet to do so himself. He wanted to be the first one to touch her, to have her. The only one to do so. He was still trying to figure out a way to tell her that without scaring her off. He knew fish-face knew something was up, but was respectful enough to not press him about it. Besides, he'd never ask Jin for help, thinking it would be a sign of weakness. And just when he'd planned on finally saying something to her, these stupid bastards had gotten in the way. The mofos had interrupted their peaceful – as peaceful as it ever got with the almost constant back and forth of insults/teasing between him and Fuu – evening and taking her away.

He smirked again, pushing off the wall and back out into the street. He casually walked out behind the group of men who'd been chasing him. He stuck his pinkie in his ear, yawning loudly to get their attention. Still cleaning out his ear, he lazily flicked his eyes over the group, holding himself in a relaxed stance that fooled all but his companions, hiding the rage and blood lust that was making his vision red around the edges. "Heya ladies," he drawled. "Any of you bitches know where they took _my_ woman?" He didn't miss the possessive he'd used, but didn't let himself think about it just then.

"Ya mean that skinny ass hoe that was with ya earlier? Heh…she's up with da boss by now, probably gettin' broken in." The one in the middle smirked. The pirate's eyes narrowed on the end of his monologue. Mugen guessed he was the leader, seeing as how the other three goons were splayed out around him and kept looking to him.

Another piped up. "Boss likes dem skinny ones. She was feisty too. Just his type. Almost too bad she won't be that way no more once he's done with 'er. I'da liked to get me some'a dat ass myself befo-" He cut off with a gurgling noise as Mugen pulled his sword from his chest, letting him fall with a thud as he turned slowly towards the others. The leader backed away slowly, paling as he did so, his smirk replaced with fear at the look on the pirate's face. The shortest one, that was off to the left of the leader broke through his shock at his fallen comrade, charging forward only to get hacked across the chest as Mugen spun gracefully onto his back, kicking up to cuff the man in the jaw with his steel lined geta.

With a hard jerk of his hips, Mugen flipped himself back onto his feet as the dead man fell to the ground sword clattering by his head. The leader was still backing away, jaw now dropped in horror. He tripped over his geta, too petrified to do anything more than start crawling backwards away from the madman in front of him. Mugen smirked maliciously at the fallen man. He turned his head to glare at the remaining goon off to his right. With a yell that sounded more like a screech of fear, the small man raced towards the pirate, swinging wildly. The tattooed man danced out of the way, arms and legs a blur of copper skin, blue tattoos and glinting metal of his blade and geta. Ducking under the small man's arm, Mugen stabbed upward with his blade, the momentum pushing the man backwards to the ground lodging the blade farther between his ribs and out his back. Kicking the man off, he pulled his blade free with a squelching sound.

Flicking the blood off his blade, he stalked slowly back to the last man. His typical battle smirk gone, replaced with a blank look that emphasized the rage and murder glowing in his eyes. Crouching down by the man's head, he held the blade to his throat.

"Where'd they take her?" He bit out, tone dead with rage. The man trembled. "Where the fuck is she?" His voice rose.

The trembling man raised a shaky hand to point to the tallest building in the village. "S-sh-she's….she s-should be i-in there w-with the boss…"

"The hell he want with her?" Mugen's eyes flashed.

"H-he…the boss…he...saw her...in t-the l-last town over….s-said he'd make her his -" he cut off as the blade pressed harder to his throat, a thin trail of blood trickling down his neck and into his shirt.

"Ain't no one gonna touch what's mine. Gonna teach dat boss'a yer's a lesson on takin' what ain't his." Mugen growled. _Ain't got time ta waste on this dead man. Stupid bitch, always getting' the attention of the crazy ass mofos…_He stood up, the man on the ground sighing in relief as the pressure on his neck lessened. "Che." Mugen dug the blade into the man's chest, twisting it sadistically as he listened to the man's dying cries.

When he finally lay still, he freed his blade, turning once again to the tall building. His eyes narrowed and he started forward. _Hang on Fuu, I'm commin' for ya._

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><p><em>Red: Heya! Red here, let me know what ya think! I'm pretty knew to writing for other people to see, even if I have written a few fanfictions before. So anything constructive would be great! Hope ya like the story so far. Not sure how many chapters it'll end up with, and I'm not sure where exactly it'll end, but as of right now, I'm in the middle of the third chapter.<em>

_Mugen: Since when am I such a pansy? _

_Red: Oh, calm down...we all know you're madly in love with Fuu. _

_Fuu: *blushes* Wait...WHAAAAAT? HIM? _

_Mugen: *looks away, hands behind head, whistling* Dunno what yer talkin' 'bout. *faint blush* _

_Jin: *sighs* _


	2. Not Without A Fight

_I do not own Samurai Champloo. No matter how much I wish I did. Mugen's just so yummy. _

_Again, written during class. Most of which while talking about the end of the Byzantine Empire. Yes, I have an active imagination. I enjoy it way too much. _

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><p>She woke up after being shoved unceremoniously to a hard floor. Images and sounds flooded her now conscious mind of Mugen's look of pride after he saw her bite her captor. How his face twisted in rage as they beat her to unconsciousness. The sound of Jin's voice just before she blacked out, calling her name. The almost inhuman snarl of rage that could only have come from the pirate.<p>

Now her vision was filled with a man probably in his mid-thirties, balding and muscled. He looked like a brute. And he was leering at her. He ordered the other men out of the room, getting a few "Yessir"s out of them. He turned back to her, his eyes slightly glazed with lust as they took her in. She shuddered.

"Don't worry. They ain't done nothin' to ya. I wanted ya all nice and fresh when ya got here." At his gravelly voice, she quit trembling, peering at him through her hair. Trying to figure him out. She could tell he had to be some sort of yakuza, the boss most likely, seeing how the others had treated him. She didn't need to wait long to get more of an answer.

He advanced on her, grabbing her right wrist harshly to drag her up until she was standing. When his free hand reached up to caress her face, she flinched away. He squeezed her wrist and grabbed the front of her kimono. She'd cried out, stumbling forward a step when he pulled. When she got closer, he back handed her on the cheek, her head snapping to the side. She could already feel it swelling.

She had to admit, she was getting real fed up with getting kidnapped all the time. She realized that more often now, it was for her herself than to get at her bodyguards. She had grown up and filled out some over the last couple years. And she was sick of being the "cooperative" captive. She had no idea if the pirate of the samurai would make it in time, and she knew that if given the chance, this man would rape her. She could see it in his eyes. After getting slapped, she resolved to try and stall the inevitable as long as she could. To fight back even though she knew she wouldn't come out of it unscathed. But that would give Mugen and Jin more time to find her. _Hurry up. Gods please, let them hurry and get here. I'm not sure just how long I can last against this bastard. _

Her resolve made, she used her small momentum of turning back to face him, swinging her arm up to his face. Shrieking her rage, she clawed at his face with her nails, bloody trails leaving proof of her success. Letting go of her wrist, he swatted her hands away as though she was just a bug, only to land a punch to her gut that sent her flying back a few feet and to the floor.

"You. Little. _Bitch!"_ He screamed, spit flying. She rolled to her hands and knees coughing as he advanced again. She gasped when a foot connected with her ribs. He grabbed the back of her kimono and tossed her onto the small table a few feet away. She screamed. The force of her weight suddenly landing on the table smashed it, the pieces ripping holes in her kimono and scratching her delicate skin to leave trickles of blood. Groaning in pain, she grit her teeth, pushing up off her back to sit up and glare at the man. A warm trickle on the side of her face momentarily distracted her; she reached up, fingers coming away stained red. She must have hit her head on the wall before crashing onto the table.

Muttering obscenities that would have made the samurai blush and Mugen proud, she stood up shakily to glare at her attacker. He smirked, chest puffing out in contempt as she flew at him to hit him as hard as she could. That smirk vanished when she backed up a step to kick him in the balls. Fear coursed through her as the rage-lust built to new heights in his eyes. Grabbing her arm, he threw her to the ground, heedless to her flailing limbs. Pinning her arms at her sides with his legs, he reached down to grip the opening of her kimono. He started ripping at it while she flailed more, screeching her indignities. Adrenaline kicked in, clearing her panic stricken mind enough to realize he was far enough forward she could kick his head. So she did.

Howling in pain, he rolled off her. She rolled in the opposite direction, stumbling to her feet only to land on her face when he grabbed her ankle. Growling, he started pulling her towards him. She kicked free, crawling away. She heard him stand, and made the mistake of looking over her shoulder at him. He lunged forward and stomped on her wrist with a sickening crack, pain exploding up her arm. She whimpered, refusing to cry out. The same foot then connected with her ribs.

She rolled over to her hands and knees again, gingerly placing as little weight as she could on her left wrist. She spat at the floor. Grunting again, she was knocked down yet again when he kicked her. Pushing herself back up to a kind of sitting position with her legs tucked to the side, she glared through her hair at the man in front of her.

The yakuza boss's face was twisted in a sadistically gleeful smirk, but not without hints of pain at the edges from her kicks to his groin and head. She'd be damned if he'd see her cry in pain though. She wouldn't give up, wouldn't let him just do as he pleased with her. She'd never forgive herself if she did, and couldn't stand to see the look of pity in Jin's eyes or just that look she'd get from Mugen. She shied away from that last one even in her thought. No, she wouldn't let them down.

"Heh heh heh…you's a feisty bitch, ain't'cha?" He leered at her again, licking his lips. "I like 'em that way. So much more fun to break in." His eyes seemed to burn her skin as they rove over her still defiant form, taking in the skin of her leg and shoulder when the cloth had ripped and torn in her fighting. Blood trickled from the wound on her head and from her mouth, where he'd kicked her after knocking her over again, and from the cuts and scratches she'd amassed in fighting to get away from the men who'd taken her here. Bruises were already forming all over her body. It would take a long time to heal from all of this.

She trembled as he came closer. Anger at herself for being weak made the tears she'd been hold back from the pain spring to her eyes. He cackled, nudging her over again with his foot as he pounced on her. He must have had enough "playing" around with her. Her suspicion was confirmed when he brought her arms above her head to pin them to the floor. Her broken wrist throbbed in pain at the contact. She tried to wiggle around to get free, but the combination of screaming pain from her wrist and his weight holding her down wouldn't let her free. He rose up some, only to stomp down on her right ankle to hold her still. Fuu couldn't help it; the pain was getting to be too much. She cried out, tears leaking from her eyes to join the blood on her face. His free hand grabbed her jaw, forcing her to look at him. He licked his lips at the sight, smirking lecherously as he ran his hand down her neck. He ripped at her kimono again, leaving a huge tear from the collar to the sleeve. Pausing, he leered in her face as he removed his hand, only to place it in the tear of the cloth at her thigh. When she merely whimpered and closed her eyes, he pressed harder on her ankle, forcefully grabbing her thigh to try and peel her legs apart.

_Ohshitohshitohshitohshit. This is actually happening. Mugen? Jin? Where the hell are you? I need you! I'm actually going to get raped this time! SAVE ME!_ She let loose a wail of anguish, tossing her head, only to get smacked to silence on the same cheek.

"Shut up you stupid bitch." He ordered with a growl in her sudden silence. In the quiet, she faintly heard clangs of metal on metal and the thuds of what was possibly bodies falling to the floor somewhere in the building. _Mugen? Jin? But…how will they know which roo-_ her musings were interrupted by a hand fumbling with the knot of her obi. Hope that it might be them she'd heard gave her courage, enough to muster up the strength to start screaming. Still, he fumbled with the knot, finally getting it undone and ripping the tatters of her kimono aside before smacking her again. She only paused a second as the pain exploded across her face, stunning her, before resuming her screaming. He repeated this a few times, finally giving up on trying to shut her up.

The clangs and thuds in the hall grew louder. The wandering hand on her body was harsh and left as many bruises and scratches as his mouth was leaving slobber and bites on her skin.

A shout was heard right outside the room. The man above her paused to look towards the door, a scowl on his face. Fuu paused as well, her heart racing and throat sore from screaming. Both watched the door with trepidation. Another shout was heard and cut off as a liquid splattered onto the rice paper leaving dark trails as it dripped down. It could only be blood.

The door rattled open. She gasped. An animalistic growl rang through the room.

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><p><em>Red: OOOOOHH! CLIFFHANGER! Longer chapter this time. I find it a little easier to write from Fuu's p.o.v. Maybe it's something to do with being female? Who knows...next chapter should be up sometime in the next few days. Just gotta finish writing it. <em>

_Fuu: Umm...why am I stuck in this situation? GET ME OUT OF IT! _

_Red: Uh...sorry...don't worry, alright? I'm working on it! _

_Jin: Hmmm..._

_Red: *runs off* SORRY! _


	3. To The Rescue

_I do not own Samurai Champloo. Wish I did, so I could be around Mugen all the time ;) _

_And yes, I'm getting yelled at for taking so long on the chapter. *pointed glare at Fuu* Anyways, here it is! _

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><p>He raced towards the building. He was about 50 feet away when he stopped dead in his tracks, raising his sword to point at whoever it was behind him as he turned. His stance relaxed when Jin gave him a measured look, pushing his glasses back up his nose. Mugen grunted, nodding towards the building behind him and sheathing his sword.<p>

"Bastards said they'd taken 'er in there. Said their boss'd been eyein' 'er last town back. Fuckin' mofo said he was hopin' to git a round with 'er after da boss'd "broke 'er in.""

"Mmhmm," Jin nodded, a disgusted look on his face. He stepped forward. "Let's go ge-" he cut off when a scream followed by a loud crash was heard. More crashes and cursing were heard, the sound floating down to them from the second story. Both men stiffened, recognizing the scream.

"Go. I'll follow. Save her Mugen." Jin's voice was slightly strained, sounding a little odd compared to his usual monotone. Mugen nodded, knowing without having to ask that Jin knew how he felt about Fuu. He could see his own worry mirrored in the samurai's eyes. And saw just how pissed he was with the dead men that had taken her from them. Rage boiled yet again when he thought of the dead men hitting her in the face and stomach until she was unconscious, with him powerless to stop them as they dragged her away. He turned back to the building, seething at the images bouncing around his head of what that bastard of a boss might be doing to her as more crashes from above reached his ears.

Gravel crunched quietly behind him as Jin followed. The pirate stalked towards the stairs on the porch of the building. He paused to grin maliciously at the group of men that burst out the door as they approached.

"Where is she?" Jin queried in a quiet, but deadly voice. Mugen growled.

One of the men laughed, unsheathing his sword to point it at the two comrades. The others followed suit. "Oh, you meant that whore the boss just picked up? Hah, she's a little busy right now with the boss. You'll have to come back later." His voice grated on Mugen's ears. Feigning nonchalance, he reached up to pick at his ear. The guy's eye twitched.

"Che. Yer boss'll be busy in a bit. Busy eatin' my sword." He looked at his fingers, flicking the dirt at the man. Looking up from his fingers to the twitching man in front of him on the steps, he smirked. "Well, what'cha waitin' for? An invitation ya dumbass?"

With a final eye twitch at the pirate's actions, the man launched off the porch with a yell. The five others followed, moving to surround the two. The samurai moved to stand behind him, so they were back to back. Mugen grinned, resting his hand on his sword. Jin drew his sword as well.

Glancing over his shoulder at the dark haired man, Mugen raised an eyebrow. "Ya ready?" Jin didn't look back, just nodded imperceptibly. "Heh." He turned back to the man in front of him.

The pirate leaned forward, drawing his blade out of the sheath a couple of inches. As if that was their cue, both men became a blur of motion and within seconds were returning their blades to their respective sheaths, bodies falling in a ring around them. Turning to give his companion a smirk, the tattooed man loped up to the steps, climbing them in one leap to burst through the door. Jin followed close behind.

More men poured out of the hallways and rooms only to be met with a flash of steel and fall to the floor, lifeblood flowing out to make the floor slick. Sweeping their way through the obstacle course of bodies to the stairs, the two slashed their way to the top. After cutting down the last man at the top of the stairs, an eerie quiet settled.

Mugen went to move forward, but a hand on his arm stopped him.

"Something's not right. It's much too quiet up here. We must be careful." Jin said quietly, eyes tight. Mugen shook his arm free, hating to have to agree with four-eyes' logic.

A sudden scream broke the silence. A loud crash followed, along with some cackling. They stopped to give each other a wide-eyed look before rounding the corner, only to stop dead in their tracks.

Blood was splattered all over the corridor. Dripping down the walls, there were puddles on the floor and splatters across the ceiling. Bodies lay hacked in the sticky pools. The massacre was worse than any either had seen or dealt themselves. There were gashes in the rice paper of the doors that looked like claw marks.

Mugen shuddered at the thought of whatever it was that had done this getting to Fuu. Then he remembered the scream. Dread washed through him. Jin must have had the same thought because he rushed forward, only a step behind the pirate.

Weaving between the bodies and puddles, they made their way down the hall. Coming to a door with a particularly larger group of bodies in front of it, they looked up.

The door before them had more of the claw marks on the wood frame. Holes had been left in the rice paper panes. There was so much blood covering the door, it was hard to tell what color the paper had even been.

Reaching up to slide the door open, Jin's hand hesitated a moment above the sticky wood. Mugen saw the samurai's eyes harden as he griped the frame, sliding it open with a jerk of his wrist.

An animalistic growl escaped the pirate.

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><p><em>Red: Teehee...I feel so evil leaving it at that. Great place to stop huh? <em>

_Mugen: The hell is wrong with you woman? I've done so much, and it was somethin' I ain't even seen before? _

_Fuu: Hey! I thought you said you were gonna get me out of this? I WASN'T EVEN IN THIS CHAPTER! *throws hands up in disgust* _

_Red: Uh...*looks around* Hey Jin :) *hides behind* Umm...Fuu? *peeks around Jin, points off to the side* LOOK! THERE'S FOOD! _

_Fuu/Mugen: WHERE? *looks at each other* NO! IT'S MINE! *races off to go eat*_

_Red: Well...at least I can write in peace now...except I'm hungry too...*sighs* _

_Jin: Probably shouldn't have told them about the food then. *stomach grumbles* _

_Red: Fine...go eat. I'll keep writing my hands to the oblivion of cramps and carpal tunnel. Almost done with the next chapter! xD _


	4. Unexpected Development

_I do not own Samurai Champloo. _

_And yay! 2 chapters in a day! Sure has been productive considering I didn't really write for all that long today :) _

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><p>A growl escaped his lips at the state of the room before them. There had definitely been a scuffle here. Pictures that had been on the walls lay on the floor, their frames cracked. Broken pottery lay in clumps around the room. A broken – <em>No, it's completely shattered, <em>Mugen corrected himself – table lay a few feet to the side of the door. It looked as if someone had been thrown onto it. Bits of pink stuck out to him around the room. His eyes narrowed as he recognized the pink bits as bits of cloth from her kimono.

The biggest clue was the body strewn almost haphazardly just off center of the room. The pirate's vision went a little red around the edges when he saw more pink clutched in the hands. Another growl escaped him.

Jin sighed, eyes still hard, as he stepped into through the doorway. Weaving gingerly through the wreckage, he approached the body on the floor. Only then did the harsh sound of struggling breaths reach his ears.

Taking another, closer look around, he too made his way to the center of the room. Geta crunched over splinters and broken pottery. He saw blood on the pieces of wood of the table along with more strips of pink cloth. _That musta been one'a da crashes we heard earlier. She got thrown on the table. _His eyes narrowed again.

A slightly bloody handprint on the wall had to be hers as well. She was the only one he knew with hands that small. Small flecks of blood jumped out at him throughout the wreckage. She had to be hurt and was definitely bleeding. How badly, though, he didn't want to think about.

He stopped next to the samurai, looking down. The ragged breathing was coming from the body at his feet.

Using his toe to turn the body over, bloody gashes that looked like the claw marks from the hall winked wetly up at him. He took in the man's face, covered in scratches and a smear of blood. Scratches covered his arms as well. Fuu must have done those at least.

Then he saw more bits of the pink cloth. Whole strips of her kimono lay next to the man. They must have been underneath him before Mugen rolled him over. _This bastard definitely was tryin' ta rape 'er…_

A gurgling laugh cut through his thoughts. Looking back at the man's disfigured face, he watched as blood bubbled on his lips and dribbled down as the man coughed.

The man smirked at the two men standing above him, clutching the pink strips tighter in his hands as another bought of coughing wracked his frame. "Heh…yer too…late…s-she's gone…b-…bastards took…took my new…whore from…me…hadn't even…gotten ta the…fun p-…part yet…feisty bitch…an' jus' when…I was..startin' ta…break 'er i-in…"

Mugen crouched, grabbing the front of the man's ghi to pull him up so they were face to face.

"Where the fuck did they go? Who's got 'er? TELL ME WHERE THEY TOOK HER!" He screamed, emphasizing each question with a shake. The man's head lolled back a bit as he smirked again.

Reaching up a shaking hand, the former yakuza boss pointed to a hole in the wall next to the window. Mugen turned to look over his shoulder. The window frame was busted, like someone had thrown a body through it. Mugen looked up at Jin. Jin raised an eyebrow and pointed to a bloody trail from the door towards the window. Whoever it was must have used one of the bodies from the hall to make the hole.

Turning back to the dying man in his hands Mugen shook him again. "Where is she? Who in the hell took my woman?" He near screamed again.

The man laughed again, although much weaker than he had before. His hand flopped to the floor. "Weird little man….weird sword…and claws…and…a man…with an…eye patch….interrupted…my…fun…took…my new…whore…from me…left through…dat hole….somethin'…somethin' 'bout…a cave…not far…from here…" He stopped, drawing ragged breaths. Mugen shook him again.

"Heya bastard, don't stop. What else do you know?" The yakuza's eyes dimmed as he watched. The ragged breaths slowed, the blood trickling from the wound on his chest slowing down as well. Mugen shoved the body from himself in disgust.

Rising from his crouch, he turned to Jin. "Now what'da we do? Ain't got nuthin' to go on to find 'er."

Jin was about to respond when a sound behind them stopped him. Both men whipped around to see a figure crouched on the window sill.

The figure cackled. A hand rose to the mouth only to get bitten agitatedly. "Heeee….I found you. Big brother said we would. I want to kill. I want to so bad. But Big Brother said I couldn't. Not yet. He said the girl would get you to come. So I found her." The figure keened.

It hopped down from the window, cackling gleefully.

Mugen put his hand to his sword. "Who the fuck are you?"

The little man on the floor cackled again. "Kill. I want to kill. But Big Brother said no. Said to give you something to prove we had the girl. The thing we took back in the last town when I first found you. Heeeeee." He reached into his shirt, pulling out a short pink tube with a tinkling of keychains.

Mugen swallowed. The crazy bastard in front of him had Fuu's tanto.

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><p><em>Two days before:<em>

"_Jeez, why are people so pushy and rude? Did you see that? That guy just ran right into me and didn't even say anything. He just ran off!" Fuu pouted in outrage, her eyebrow twitching. "Ugggghhh." She tossed her hands in the air. _

_Mugen rolled his eyes at her antics, hands behind his head. She could really act like a child sometimes. He looked over at Jin who was watching her with a blank look on his face. The samurai looked up at him and shook his head. _

"_It wasn't a pickpocket, was it?" Jin asked her quietly. She froze, then reached into her obi for her purse. Pulling it out, she scowled at the little bag and shook it. _

"_Who would want to steal this thing? It's not like we've got any money anyways." She growled. "Besides, we just used up the last of it on lunch." She shoved the purse back into her obi. Looking up to glare at her two companions, she reached out and tugged on an arm of each of them. "And you two need to go get a job so we can have money to eat tomorrow!" _

_He ignored the shiver of warmth that went up his arm at her touch. "Che. Why'da we always gotta be the ones ta work. You get yer skinny ass a job and quit complainin.'" It was always easier to hide behind the insults with her. Get her worked up and she wouldn't pay attention to how he looked at her, how his gaze lingered far longer than necessary, how he kept stopping himself from saying something very unlike him, how he held back from just grabbing her right then and kissing her senseless. _

_Jin gave him a look. "We've looked in this town for jobs. No one would hire us. Let's just move on to the next town. It's about a day's walk away, from what I was told." He said to quiet her down. _

_It was always funny to watch her demeanor change so quickly. She was suddenly all smiles and ready to go, laughingly telling them to hurry up as they walked out of the village._

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><p><em>They must have taken 'er tanto then…an' we'da thought they'd gone for 'er purse. She did say she couldn't remember what exactly the guy looked like. Stupid woman, gettin' 'er weapon stolen an' not even noticin'…..<em>He thought.

"What'da ya want with 'er?" He growled out.

"Heeeee heeeeee….we don't want her. Big Brother said she's just bait. Ooooohhhhh I want to. I really want to kill. Big brother said to give you this. He said to tell you to go to the cave at the base of the mountain. The one by the river." The crazy man tossed the tanto to Mugen's feet.

"If you want her, you better come. Big Brother said he's waiting. Said I can't kill you now." He started biting his hand again. Turning away, he jumped back up to the window sill. Looking back over his shoulder at Mugen, he cackled again. He jumped down and disappeared.

Mugen crouched down to pick up the lacquered sheath. Gripping it in his hands, he spun around as he stood, glaring at Jin.

"Why didn't we think of this?" He growled out, raising the pink tanto to eye level, the keychains tinkling again.

Jin closed his eyes and pinched the bridge of his nose. He shook his head. "We need to find out where this cave is. We don't have time to think about that right now. Who knows what they're doing to Fuu."

Mugen nodded, slipping the small blade into his sleeve. He had a nagging thought in the back of his mind that he'd seen the crazy little man before. The image of him ran through the pirate's mind again. He straightened. _It musta been that little creep. He had a claw thing on his one hand. And when he turned around…that sword…_He shook his head.

Jin was at the door, looking at him. Mugen nodded and followed him out.

* * *

><p><em>Red: Well then. CuriousRiz, there's the tanto. Not what you were expecting huh? <em>

_Fuu: Oh gods...*rifles through clothing* You're right! It's not there! I always forget I have the thing. Especially since Mugen and Jin usually come before I even need to use it or it gets taken away. _

_Red: Wait...you finished all that food already? O.O _

_Mugen: *picks at ear and grins sleepily* Well, she didn't eat all of it. I got my share too. _

_Red: *drools and stares dreamily* There's that pretty smile of his...*le sigh* _

_Mugen: Uhhh...*waves hand in front of Red's face* Hey, chick, you alright? _

_Jin: Oh just leave her. She'll snap out of it in a bit._

_Fuu: Guess it's a good thing she told me that it'd probably be a while for the next chapter or chapters. And that she'll try to make it a little longer. So yeah...*stares at Red* This girl...I swear..._


	5. Darkness then Redness

_Red: GOMENSAI! *bows* (Anyone seen/read Skip Beat!, think of Kyoko after she first snaps out of character after she ran off to create her Mio. That's how I am right now, lol) __I'm so sorry it took me so long to update! I was on break and my cat was sick so I had to do practically everything for her (force feed her, carry her to the litter box, give her a bath) for the whole week and she ended up passing away two days ago. __BUT! Uber long chapter to make up for it :) And yes, I've been watching too many Tobuscus videos, hence the chapter title, but it kinda fit ;) _

_I do not own Samurai Champloo. If I did, I would be a big messy puddle of fangirl with SycoSiren that wouldn't get anything done because Mugen was around. lol _

* * *

><p>An animalistic growl rang through the room. She gasped. The man above her's scowl deepened.<p>

Blood dripped down the walls behind him. She could see the bodies strewn across the hall in a heap from what she could see through the door way. The sound of steel on steel and angry shouts could still be heard from the floor below.

This was definitely not who she had been hoping it was.

The man in the door way smiled slightly at her. He seemed nice enough, just looking at him smiling like that, but she could sense something lying underneath the serene outer shell. It just didn't feel right. Maybe it was the eye patch, but it could have also been the scythe strapped to his back. It glinted at her eerily.

A noise at the door made all three look down.

"Heeeeeheeeeee. I did it brother. I killed them like you said." A short man, he seemed more like a creature in Fuu's mind, rasped out to the man with the eye patch. He looked crazed, hunched over and biting on his hand.

"Well done, Denkibou." The tall man smiled down at the jittery creature. He looked back up towards her. She squirmed under his gaze, realizing she was probably in a lot of danger and wishing she had some better way to protect herself. Unfortunately, she was still trapped under the bastard above her, wrist and ankle screaming in pain at every movement.

The man raised his hand, pointing to the one who had her pinned. "Take him out. Don't kill him though. I want to leave him for the ones downstairs."

The creature-like man beside him smiled, showing pointed teeth. "Heeeeeee. Blood. I get to see more blood." He cackled gleefully, as he shuffled into the room.

Fuu flattened herself to the floor as much as she could, shrinking back from the hunched figure approaching and from the man almost growling above her.

The yakuza boss looked up at the man in the door way. "The hell ya think yer doin'? Can't ya see I'm kinda busy here?" The creature like man kept coming and his scowl deepened. He sat up, straddling her thighs. She covered her face with her now free hands, whimpering quietly as a wave of pain went up her arm at the motion. "Oi, ya bastards, ya even listenin' ta me? Eh?"

She peeked through her fingers towards the man in the doorway. His smile had widened. She looked back at the man straddling her. His scowl had deepened, and he was cracking his knuckles. It was obvious he really did not like being interrupted.

A flash of light in the corner of her eye made her eyes widen. The yellow haired creature-man had drawn claw like blades up his hand and was licking the tip of one.

_Ok, I know I'm really scared right now…and I know that crazy guy is gonna kill this bastard, but seriously, how long does it take to get from the door to here? _Fuu thought as she watched him crawl or scuttle, she wasn't sure how to describe his movements, across the floor to them. He stopped a few feet away to leer at the man above her.

Next thing she knew, warmth splattered onto her bare arms and she barely had a second to realize it was blood before the yakuza boss fell on top of her. Blood was dripping onto her chest and stomach from the wound on his chest as he grabbed at the pieces of her kimono.

Footsteps tread across the floor closer to her and a hand grabbed her arm, yanking her up and out from under the bleeding man. The tall dark haired man held her up by her arm, feet dangling, then looked up and down her beaten and ragged form, taking in the tattered remains that were her kimono. He took a moment to smirk at her and watched as her eyes widened when she saw the fist he had aimed at her stomach.

The smirk widened after the noise down the hall lessened. _Jin and Mugen must be getting close_.

"Can't let things get too far ahead of schedule." His eyes seemed to glint with that same eerie light that bounced off the scythe on his back. She screamed just before his fist struck its target and her world went black.

* * *

><p>She groaned. <em>What the hell? Why do I hurt so much all over? My ankle…and my wrist…my stomach too…did I eat something funny and collapse weird? It would be just like those two to let me do something like that and not react right away….wait…but the side of my head feels wet…and it's so cold.<em> She shivered. A faint breeze floated across her skin raising goosebumps. _Am I naked? I shouldn't be able to feel that muc- …MUGEN THAT BASTARD! WHAT THE HELL DID HE DO? And how could Jin let him?_ She whined. She tried to shift, the hard floor was digging into her hip after all, but the movement sent jolts of pain from all over. She moaned. Her breath caught.

Images flooded her mind. Men surrounding them. Her getting taken away from her companions. The helpless fury on Mugen's face before she blacked out. The creepy old yakuza boss' face as she fought back, as his hands greedily wandered her body. The man with the eye patch and his crazed creature-like brother. The smirk on the one eyed man's face as her sight faded yet again that day.

Fuu's eyes flew open. The dark ceiling of a cave was the first thing she became aware of. The dim lighting was next, so she felt it safe to assume that some time had passed if it was dark now. She looked to her right and came to the conclusion that she must be at the back of the cave, since the wall curved to either side.

Deciding to use her other senses to gauge her surroundings, the gentle sound of lapping water and the babble of it moving around rocks brought the river to mind. She did recall someone in the last village saying something about a cave by the river near the next town, but couldn't remember what else was said.

Rolling over slowly, so as not to cause more pain, she faced the entrance. In the dim lighting she could see a man in a wheelchair not far off to the left, with what she could only assume, from the direction the sound of the water was coming from, was a view of the river. The man with the eye patch was sitting along the wall between her and the man in the wheelchair. He looked up at the sound of her movement. She looked him over, noticing his scythe was no longer strapped to his back. A glint of silver just in front of him on the floor let her know he still had it close at hand. The creature-like man was nowhere in sight.

"Ah, awake now are we little girl?" His gaze was steady when she looked back up to him.

"Where are we? And what do you want with me?" Her voiced rasped and she shivered again. Maybe it was because she had just woken up, or maybe it was because the strange man wasn't around, or maybe it was because the man sitting and staring at her was radiating calm at the moment, but she felt oddly calm herself. It was peaceful almost, except for the alternating chill and flares of pain that wracked her body. She didn't get much of a chance to ponder that before he answered.

"A cave, obviously, not too far from the town. Your companions were not that far behind us when we left. But I would have to guess that they've been held up by Denkibou, if not already be dead by his hand, even though I told him to let our friend through." He looked thoughtful for a moment, staring out the cave mouth, before returning his gaze to her. "As for what I want with you…you were the perfect bait to get to him." The confusion must have registered on her face because he laughed. "You see little girl, we've been tracking him for some time. To get our revenge. We finally caught up to you the other day, but we held back. I wanted him to feel the same we did. Then I saw you, and how he acted around you, how he looked at you."

"Who are you tal-"She tried to cut in but he kept going.

"I knew that you would be the perfect piece to use in our revenge. We take you, and he'd come after you. And then we could get our revenge. It was perfect. We decided to follow you for a while. But we needed to stay far enough back that none of you would suspect a thing. So, I bumped into you and took your tanto. A small thing really, in good shape, you probably hardly use it do you?" He gave her an inquisitive stare.

Her eyes widened. Her tanto. How could she have forgotten her tanto? She could have used it on that bastard that tried to rape her earlier! What hadn't she thought of it? Brown eyes narrowed. _Wait…he said he took it_…She looked at him closely, studying his features. Her eyes widened again. _He was the pickpocket! That weird one that didn't go for my purse!_ A cold wave of realization crashed through her. He took her tanto and she hadn't even realized it. She couldn't believe herself. One of the precious things she had from her mother and she hadn't even realized it was missing. _Stupid, stupid, stupid Fuu_…the self-loathing was setting in. She was brought from her reverie when he laughed. Her emotions must have been playing across her face and the bastard found it amusing. She glared at him.

"I'll take that as a no then. It was either that or you take very good care of it. Anyway, I gave it Denkibou. So he would know who to follow. Unfortunately, before we got a chance to take you ourselves, that yakuza group got you. We had to tweak our plan a bit in order to get a hold of you. But I think this way actually turned out better for our end. You've been taken from him twice now." He smiled again. It was creepy now.

"You said something about revenge…what would you need revenge for? Were you one of the students at the dojo with Jin?" She rasped quietly. Talking was hurting her throat.

He laughed. "Jin? Who is…oh, you must mean that samurai that was with you?" At her faint nod he laughed again. "No." His features settled in a look that she couldn't really decipher. She just knew that the look sent shivers up her spine, and not from the breeze that was blowing in again. Her shivering brought his gaze back to her. The smile that broke out on his face was no long friendly. She could see the madness behind it, although much better controlled than his creature-like brother.

"Mugen's the bastard we're after. He attacked our ship and we were blamed for it when he got away. My little brother went crazy. My older brother," he pointed to the man in the chair beside him, "was forced to this and hasn't spoken since. We want our revenge and you're going to help us get it!" His voice was raised and had a crazy lit to it that had her cowering where she lay. This man was definitely off his rocker too.

"Speaking of which," he said while standing and grabbing his scythe, "he's taking too long. I'm starting to get bored. Hmm…I wonder, if he can hear your screaming, will he come sooner?" What little light there was was behind him, but she could still see the crazed glint in his eye as he advanced on her. She shrank back to the cave wall not far behind her, ignoring as best she could the stabs of pain movement produced.

He chuckled again. It was starting to get on her nerves. She rose to a sitting position, her back to the cave wall. Steeling herself against the pain, she pushed herself up the wall until she was standing shakily. It wasn't too far to the mouth of the cave and not all that far to the woods. She knew it was a stupid idea, trying to run, especially in the state she was in, but she had to try. She wasn't going to just let this guy kill her for entertainment while he waited for Mugen. She doubted Mugen really even cared enough to come after her. He'd see her double kidnapping as a sort of freedom, of finally being rid of her so he could get on with his life. She figured Jin at least had his samurai honor to come after her, but she wasn't expecting all that much. They were probably still fighting with that yakuza gang. A wave of hopelessness almost dropped her to her knees. But her need for survival won out, even overpowering her pain to the point she was barely aware of it, if not for the shaking and bad balance.

"Oh, think you could really do anything little girl? You, who's almost at the breaking point, beaten and ragged, and almost naked?" At that, she took a second to look down and saw that she was indeed almost naked. Strips of cloth barely covered the important parts, and her chest bindings were barely holding together by a thread. She was surprised that what was left of her kimono was even still managing to hold together. Normally she would have shrieked and run off, but her current situation overrode that instinct. Her main concern was survival, decency could wait.

A rustle of leaves and a splash in the river drew his attention from her momentarily. He turned to look out the cave mouth. The burst of adrenaline from the noise pushed her to slink along the wall, towards the man in the chair. She figured if she could get behind the chair, he wouldn't use the scythe in fear of hurting his brother. She pushed off the wall, to creep closer to the chair. She didn't get far.

A chain wrapped around her leg, pulling her to the ground and closer to him. She stared at the chain on her leg, following it up from where it was digging into her skin to see it coming from the staff of the scythe. A brief flash of confusion, until she realized the blade itself was sitting on the floor next to her. He twitched the chain, a smirk on his face when she gasped.

Yanking on the chain, he pulled her closer; the stone floor leaving its own scrapes and cuts on her skin. She leaned forward as best she could, fingers fumbling with the chain to loosen it. Scrabbling to roll over to push herself up, the sound of the chain sliding on stone spurred her to move quicker. She only got a few steps before stumbling, almost losing her balance, but her flailing arms got it back. One step. Two steps more and a flash of silver by her face had her backpedaling. The scythe blade was wedged in the ground just in front of her. She side stepped, getting out of reach enough to only get a gash on the leg as it flew backwards. The force of the strike and her slipping balance cause her to spin back towards her attacker.

His cool demeanor was long gone, a crazed, maniacal smile and glint to his eye replaced whatever calm she had seen. He was a predator, and his prey was trying to flee. She shuddered in fear, and collapsed to her knees.

He retracted the scythe, the chain retreating to the staff. Her eyes wide and staring as he stalked up to her. A sharp pain in her upper arm was the first clue he was intent on beating her as well. The next blow had her crashing to the floor, hair flying from the last of its bun to go in her face sticking to the blood there. He kicked her then, aiming another blow from the staff on her leg as he did so. It was too much, too much. She screamed in agony.

"There's a girl. Keep screaming. Let him hear you. Let him come. Let him see you broken and bleeding, torn to shreds and dying before his eyes." He cackled.

Her vision was starting to fade around the edges. Her senses were still on high alert, enough so that she heard the crunch of gravel outside the cave. The click of steel on stone getting loud enough that he paused in his abuse to look up. She took the opportunity to lift her head to stare out as well.

Never before had she seen him like this. Blood was spattered on his skin, although she couldn't tell if it was his or not. Not on his arms and legs at least. Three lines on his cheek were dripping blood, as was his hand. Her eyes widened in recognition at the marks. He must have gotten them from the creature man with the claw blades.

It was the look in his eyes that chilled her though. She had never seen them look so dead of anything except rage. He looked to be so lost to it she wondered if he'd lost himself to it completely. His motions were even more fluid, stronger with murderous purpose as he approached the cave.

Fuu had never been happier to see him, nor more scared of him in her life. And she had to admit to herself, staring at him now, that no matter how much his current rage, she _was_ happy to see him. She usually was, unless it was watching him walk away to a bar to get drunk or off into the red-light district to find some cheap whore. Those times hurt. But he was here. Now. When she needed him most.

"Ah, so he finally showed up. I told you that taking you would bring him here." The man with the eye patch looked down at her. Grinning wider, he stepped forward, and stepped on her arm. She cried out in pain. Mugen's eyes blazed, but he stopped.

The man standing above her turned his attention to Mugen. "Well, well, well. Look who finally decided to show up. I was getting bored, so I decided to play around with your little friend here." Fuu whimpered as he added more weight. "So glad you're finally here. Now we can get on with our revenge."

"I see that my brother got to you, eh?" He said, pointing to the marks on the pirate's cheek.

Mugen grunted. "He's dead, in case ya were wonderin' where he is."

The man's eye narrowed. He let off of Fuu's arm, stepping closer to the pirate. She flinched when he rested the end of the staff next to her arm. The motion caused Mugen's eyes to flicker to her for a second. She saw the rage build when he looked at her.

She shrank back, wincing as the pain flared again. She knew what Mugen was going to do, and she needed to move. She'd been around him in enough fights to know what he'd tried to tell her with his eyes. She dragged herself to the side of the cave, getting closer to her original destination, but still between the two brothers.

A scream of rage stopped her. She turned to watch as the scythe lashed out towards her again. She closed her eyes, waiting for the impact and the explosion of pain. The clang of steel on steel met her instead.

Opening her eyes, she saw Mugen standing in front of her. The chain from the scythe was wrapped around his blade. She watched as his foot slid back on the stone floor, fearing for a second that he was losing his balance. She mentally smacked herself for stupidity when he pushed off his foot to rush forward, flinging his blade out to the side to free it from the chain.

Dodging to the side, he spun as the chain whipped past him. The blade flew over his head, a few pieces of hair falling after the blade passed.

She watched with awe at his agile movements. He spun and kicked out, the silver arc of his blade adding to the grace of his movements. The next few seconds were a blur of silver, red and black as the two fought. She could barely follow their movements.

Suddenly, the scythe wielder flew back, the chain wrapped around his neck. Mugen was standing on the chain by the scythe blade. Struggling to his feet, the dark haired man yanked hard on the staff, pulling the chain towards him. She caught Mugen's smirk before he stepped off, letting the blade fly. She watched in horrified fascination as the man's eye widened just before the scythe reached him, embedding itself in his flesh. He slumped forward, his weight pushing the blade further into him and out his back. She narrowed her eyes in disgust.

She sat up slowly. Pushing herself to her hands and knees, the position put her facing the man in the chair. Her eyes widened in panic when she saw he'd opened a compartment on the arm, and had what looked like a gun in it aimed at Mugen. The smile on his face told her he was planning to shoot. Crying out, she surged up, jumping in the line of fire just as it went off.

Pain exploded in her arm.

Everything went a little hazy and started moving in slow motion. She fell to her knees, suddenly mesmerized by the smoke from the gun as it curled lazily into the air. A flash of silver not far above it drew her attention to a blade protruding from the man's chest. She watched as blood pooled and dripped from the wound down his chest.

Finding the smoke more interesting, she turned her attention back to it, watching it curl and dissipate into the air. Once again, movement above drew her eyes upwards. She watched as the blade was removed from the body, shaken, and returned to its sheath at the person's waist. She looked up into a pale face with glasses surrounded by dark hair. He seemed to be speaking, his mouth was moving at least, but she couldn't hear it. All she heard was a roaring that blotted out all other sound. She blinked slowly.

Movement and another flash of silver at the edge of her sight made her look down. Her hands were shaking and long red lines traced down her left arm, pooling at her elbow and soaking into the strips of fabric still covering her. A flash of red next to her, and she looked up, only to come face to face with Mugen. He looked like he was saying something, possibly angrily from the look on his face, but she couldn't hear a word.

He grabbed her shoulders and shook her slightly, probably to reinforce what he was saying since she wasn't responding. The only reason she knew he was shaking her was because he was bobbing in her vision. That stopped suddenly, and she followed his gaze to his hand as he pulled it away, now covered in red.

His eyes flicked back up to her, brows creased, and his lips moved again. She blinked. His eyes widened and he turned to the man who was now crouched in front of her, who she was belatedly recognizing as Jin. The pirate must have been yelling, because spit was flying out of his mouth only just missing the samurai.

She watched, slightly amused, as Jin placed a hand on Mugen's arm and he calmed. Her eyes moved from the contrasting skin tones to Jin's face as he peered at her. Nodding, he turned back to the pirate and said something that must have made sense to the man as he nodded as well.

The roaring in her ears was getting louder.

Mugen stood up and moved, her eyes going to him just as a shroud of red fell around her. His ghee. Her eyes followed him as he picked up his sword and put it back in its sheath. Then he bent down next to her and looked her in the eye. She noticed the rage was now completely gone from his eyes. He said something again, then sighed and looked down. She watched him curiously. He looked back up, leaned forward so his face was in hers again and kissed her.

She blinked and suddenly was being pulled up in the air, the red flecked white shirt of Mugen's chest now her view of the world. She looked up at him to see he was speaking again, but to who she didn't know.

Looking past him, she saw the dark ceiling of the cave give way to a cloudless sky sprinkled with stars. Black spots were starting to form in her vision, obstructing her view. The last thing she saw was Mugen looking down at her with an expression she couldn't read before everything went black. Again.

* * *

><p><strong>Question for y'all. Do you like the chapter to be longer like this? I was just rereading the other chapters and realized they were really quite short...lol Review and let me know! Thanks ~ Red<strong>

_Red: Heya! Once again, sorry for the wait! But hey, lotsa action in this one huh? And it was long! Took up like 6 1/2 pages! _

_Fuu: Oh, quit your bragging! I got beaten up and SHOT! *tears up* HOW COULD YOU DO THAT TO ME? I THOUGHT WE WERE FRIENDS? _

_Red: *hugs and cries with her* I'M SORRY! Let's go get some food to take our minds off it! LIKE CHEESECAKE! And tea, cause I need to get rid of my cold. :D_

_Fuu: *hugs back* Food, and desserts at that? LET'S GO!_

_Jin: *shakes head* I better go as well, make sure you two don't destroy something. _

_Mugen: But that's all the fun! Let's go get that food! _

_Red/Fuu: NO! You don't get any of it Mugen. OURS! *runs off leaving them in the dust*_


	6. Author's Note

Hey guys, Red here. I'm so sorry it's taking me so long with the next chapter. I'd had it all worked out in my head up until the end of the last chapter, and figured I'd worry about what to do once I'd reached that point when I got there. Then I got there, and got completely stuck. Figured I'd leave it for a while, and come back to it with fresh eyes. Still got nothing, I'd get a few paragraphs and didn't like how it was, start over and over and over again. Then life got in the way, and I came back, after some time, and still got nothing. I'm completely stuck as to how to proceed with the story as of right now.

So, I've got a proposition for all of you. Give me some prompts or ideas of what you think could happen, and hopefully I'll be able to get inspiration enough to keep the story going and resolve the loose ends. Sound good? I would greatly appreciate your feedback :)


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